American Council Standardized Writing and Oral Proficiency Test – ALTA

We Are Administering the ALTA Competency Testing for Students Nationwide

The Language Assessment ALTA, provided by the Bulgarian School of Seattle in partnership with school and district authorities across the country, certifies that our high school students have met the requirements for the Seal of Biliteracy, based on the ILR proficiency scale. The assessment is standardized by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines and demonstrates the proficiency in the Bulgarian language on student’s college applications. Plus, a strong score could help the candidate fulfill a college admission and /or job placement requirements.

Step 1: The Writing ALTA Assessment. This test measures the candidate’s ability to write in the target language. When results are being received from this assessment, the candidate must proceed to step 2.

Step 2: The Speaking ALTA Assessment. This test measures how well candidates can speak and understand the language when spoken.

How Do We facilitate to earn the Bulgarian Language Competency Credits?

For Bulgarian students in 9–12 grades, our goal is to develop a learning system that supports students to receive world language credits by demonstrating language proficiency. In order to increase student access, the Bulgarian School of Seattle has established online classes aligned with the guidelines set forth the USA State Boards of Education .

Novice to Intermediate: 1 to 2 credits

Intermediate to Advanced: 3 to 4 credits

Advanced to Superior (important for applying in the top high universities)

Since students may demonstrate varied levels of proficiency across skills, credits will be awarded based on the lowest common level of proficiency demonstrated across the skill areas. (Example: If a student demonstrated Intermediate Mid level proficiency in Speaking, but Novice Mid in Reading and Writing, then credits would be awarded based on the lowest common level of demonstrated proficiency, i.e. one credit for Novice Mid. The student would not receive individual credits for separate language skills. In this example, the student would not receive four credits for Intermediate Mid in Speaking and one credit each for Novice Mid in Reading and Writing. The total award is one World Language credit.)